YOUR COMMUNITY
NEWSPAPER SINCE 1969

June 21, 1987 News 985-2131

A 1985 PRISONER’S heartfelt plea for penpals has turned
into a costly relationship for two North Vancouver women
duped in an elaborate fraud scheme operated from a U.S.

prison.

North Vancouver RCMP fraud
investigator Doug Chisholm said
the two women responded to a let-
ter published in the North Shore
News soliciting correspondence.
The letter was signed by Jerry
Roseberry, inmate number 4096,
Indian State Prison, Michigan Ci-
ty.
In the letter Roseberry wrote, ‘‘!
am very lonely and want very
much to meet new friends...I’m
not seeking pity, nor am | a mean
person either. Just want to serve
my sentence so once again J can be
a productive member of society.”

A young, single mother struck
up written correspondence with
Roseberry shortly after the letter
was published and soon began tak-
ing collect calls from him after she
gave him her phone number.

Under the pretence of helping
the woman pay for the phone bills
and her rent, Roseberry sent her a
$500 U.S. postal money order
which she cleared through her local
bank account.

WOMAN STUNG

Said Chisholm: ‘‘She was stung as
soon as the bank tried to get the
charge back and the U.S. postal
service didn’t honor the cheques.
The scam involved altered figures
on U.S. postal money orders orig-
inally worth no more than a few
dollars. She had to pay it back.”

The woman contacted North
Vancouver RCMP shortly after
receiving two more postal orders
June 5 from Roseberry worth $500
U.S. each.

“She called him and told him
about the forgery,’ Chisholm
said. ‘‘Roseberry told her he was
alarmed that the money orders
were forged and that she should
have the two cheques checked. We
advised her to cut off further con-
tact.’’

A second North Vancouver
woman, 47, was also in touch with
Roseberry via collect calls, He
professed himself to be a wealthy
apartment complex owner.

At first he sent the money orders
to her under the pretence that

By MICHAEL BECKER
some of the money sent be used to
cover the cost of the phone calls,
Chisholm explained. Later he told
her that he had been paying his
lawyer $250 a week to look after
the rental receipts for the apart-
ment, but that he would be willing
to pay her $150 a week to Jook
after the apartment income which
he then mailed to her in the form
of U.S. postal money orders.

ACCOUNT FROZEN

Said Chisholm, ‘‘She opened an
account locally, deposited her por-
tion and made no withdrav.ws un-
til the scam was discovered by the
bank and the account was frozen.
The money orders were coming
from different cities in Indiana and
were sent by a network of people
believed to be working with
Roseberry.’’

The bank recovered
worth $4,950 U.S,
woman.

Said Chisholm, ‘She deposited
her portion arid sent the balance
back in cash by courier to various
addresses throughout Indiana for
him. Her bank picked up on ir-
regularities in the money orders
and we interceded in early April.

According to Chisholm, the
woman, who was married at the
time she originally wrote to
Roseberry, was motivated by a
desire to help convicts.

No charges are pending locally.

‘*Both women are victims who
were used in this scam (to turn
around forged money orders.
Locally there may be more people
out there who are involved in this.

‘‘Roseberry has been miaintain-
ing innocence in the affair, saying
he was scammed by people he had
had faith in,’’ said Chisholm.

U.S. postal authorities are in-
vestigating the fraud and forgeries
out of Michigan City, indiana.
Severa) individuals have been in-
dicted at Indiana State Peniten-
tiary for similar fraud offences.

its losses
from the

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PAGE 25

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Classified 986-6222 Distribution 986-1337 60 pages 25¢

: 2
nA Toes
wae

ATHE CIVIC plaza outside the North Vancouver City municipal hall has been
Btransformed into a fiesta of color this week as the Folkfest Craft Show returns once
jagain to the 14th and Lonsdale location. Craf-s, such as these stone candles made by
BR Joyce Perreault, will be displayed daily until June 27.

NEWS photo Stuart Davis